Content analysis of research in the Journal of Counseling Psychology (1973–1998).

A content analysis of the research published in the Joumal of Counseling Psychology (JCP) was conducted for a 26-year period (1973–1998). A total of 2,027 articles were classified into 14 substantive content categories. Frequency distributions were used to identify the most frequently published authors and institutional affiliations, as well as the gender and ethnic characteristics reported. The principal areas of research activity and publication in the JCP were process only, process and outcome, vocational behavior research, and the development and evaluation of tests and measures. These 4 categories accounted for 55.2% of the articles examined. Typical reported samples contained college students of both genders. This content analysis revealed that over this 26-year time span, the research reported in the JCP has remained consistent with the mission statement of the journal. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Trends in institutional contributions to the Journal of Counseling Psychology..

Tabulated the institutional affiliation of each author for the major articles, brief reports, unsolicited comments, and contributions classified as research frontier or research methodology that appeared in Volumes 1–24 of the Journal of Counseling Psychology (JCP). Separate tabulations were made for most institutions, but the contributions of the following types of institutions were combined within type: community colleges, community mental health centers, correctional institutions, medical hospitals, public schools, religious organizations, and VA facilities. The data are summarized for the formative years of the journal (Volumes 1–8), the period of transition to an American Psychological Association journal (Volumes 9–26), the most recent 8-yr period (Volumes 17–24), and the 1st 24 yrs of publication. The data are also tabulated for the 4 latest volumes (21–24) to evaluate recent trends in institutional contributions. The 15 leading institutional contributors are rank ordered, and the number of contributions are reported within each time period. In addition, the impact of reassignment of credit for dissertation-related research on institutional productivity is studied. The relationship between institutional contributions to JCP and the perceived prestige of the institution is also investigated. (9 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Four Psychological Bulletin articles in persepctive.

Discusses the origins and later history of 4 of the author's articles that have been frequently cited. It is suggested that a large citation count does not imply that an article's intended message has been widely understood and appreciated. Suggestions are offered for psychologists writing for publication. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Subscriber perceptions of the Journal of Counseling Psychology..

Surveyed, in response to recent criticism of counseling research, 415 present and 234 past subscribers to the Journal of Counseling Psychology (JCP) to examine articles' perceived utility, strengths, and weaknesses in relation to reader characteristics. Questionnaires also secured demographic and professional background information. Results show the following: (a) Present, compared to past, subscribers more often worked in colleges or universities, were involved in research, identified with counseling psychology, were members of the American Psychological Association's Division 17, held doctorates, were teachers or supervisors, and worked with clients aged 13–28 yrs. (b) Present subscribers used the JCP most for research and counseling ideas, and counseling psychology identification was a major reason for subscribing. (c) Strengths included research design/methodology, relevance to practice, writing quality, and scholarly rigor. (d) Weaknesses included esoteric, narrow research and lack of practical relevance. (e) About 45% of the articles read were seen as useful, but definitions of utility varied by major time-use. (f) Ultimately, utility appeared related to individual requirements; 68% of Volume 22's articles were nominated at least once as most significant or useful. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

The Journal of Animal Behavior and the early history of animal behavior studies in America.

The first American scientific journal devoted specifically to the study of animal behavior was the Journal of Animal Behavior, founded by Robert M. Yerkes in 1911. An examination of Yerkes's efforts to establish such a journal underscores the precariousness of animal behavior studies (and journal publications) in this period. The analysis of the different kinds of articles published by psychologists and zoologists in the Journal of Animal Behavior shows furthermore that already by the second decade of the twentieth century psychologists and zoologists were pursuing quite distinct programs of research in terms of their choices of animal subjects, topics of investigation, and research methodologies. The relation of the Journal of Animal Behavior to its successor, the Journal of Comparative Psychology, is discussed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Common methodological problems in MMPI research.

Indicates that research with the MMPI continues at a high rate and suggests that too many articles submitted and even accepted for publication are methodologically weak. This article discusses some common methodological problems involving the use of the MMPI that were encountered in the course of reviewing articles submitted for publication. These problems involve the use of the MMPI as an all-purpose measure sensitive to "normal range" personality attributes, scale proliferation, limited-validity short forms, errors in assessing profile change, and erroneous interpretations of group data. Some suggestions for improving research designs are made. (37 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

On the mitosis of JCPP.

Addresses the concerns surrounding the division of the Journal of Comparative and Physiological Psychology (JCPP) into separate comparative and physiological publications. There is ample research to justify a journal of comparative psychology. The growing theoretical importance of etiological, ecological, and sociobiological approaches to behavior demands the institution and nurturance of a genuinely comparative publication within the American Psychological Association. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Fruits of Our Labors: Comment.

Comments on the question of publication of books of readings which are compilations of articles from the scholarly journals bearing on some problem or topic. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Graduate school origins of authors in the Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology.

Reviewed the graduate school origins of authors who published articles in the Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology from 1960-1969. There were no striking regional differences in terms of where authors received their graduate training. Although the graduates of no single university dominated the clinical research, the 10 leading institutions granting degrees to authors in this journal did account for over 1/3 of the articles published during the decade. 97% of the leading degree-granting institutions had clinical training programs approved by the American Psychological Association (APA), and graduates of APA-approved programs accounted for 80.1% of the articles published. It is concluded that the results are consistent with those in related studies and that the major university producers of articles also tend to be training students that publish in this journal. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Detecting undetected HIV-1 variants in African children using degenerate polymerase chain reaction and sequence analyses

CONTEXT: Scientific journals issue press releases to disseminate scientific news about articles they publish. OBJECTIVE: To assess whether press releases about journal articles were associated with publication of subsequent newspaper stories. DESIGN: Retrospective content analysis of newspaper stories, journal press releases, and journal tables of contents. From December 1, 1996, to February 28, 1997, press releases and tables of contents were collected from BMJ, Nature, Science, and The Lancet, along with newspaper stories on scientific research published in The New York Times (United States), Le Figaro and Le Monde (France), El País and La Vanguardia (Spain), La Repubblica (Italy), and the International Herald Tribune. MAIN OUTCOME MEASUREMENTS: Number of newspaper stories that contained reference to articles appearing in the 4 scientific journals, number of newspaper stories that referred to journal articles described in press releases, and the order in which journal articles were mentioned in press releases. RESULTS: Of the 1060 newspaper stories analyzed, 142 referred to journal articles; of these, 119 (84%) referred to articles mentioned in press releases and 23 (16%) referred to journal articles not mentioned in press releases (comparison of proportions, P=.03). Articles described first or second were referenced in more newspapers than articles described later in the press release (P=.01 by chi2 analysis). CONCLUSIONS: Journal articles described in press releases, in particular those described first or second in the press release, are associated with the subsequent publication of newspaper stories on the same topic.     

Psychology for the public: A content analysis of Psychology Today..

Surveyed the extent to which Psychology Today (PT) has maintained an empirical basis for its articles and the degree to which psychologists and individuals with doctorates have been responsible for PT articles. Two samples of PT were selected for review by 2 raters (the present authors). Findings indicate that not only have PT articles significantly shifted away from a presentation of empirically based data, but the proportion of articles authored by psychologists, as well as the educational level of authors, has declined, particularly in the last 3 yrs. (4 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Editorial.

The recent decision by the Board of Directors of the Canadian Psychological Association to discontinue the Canadian Psychological Review requires a restructuring of the editorial policies of the Canadian Journal of Behavioural Science. We shall continue to give primary emphasis to the publication of original research from any applied area of behavioural science. However, beginning in 1979, we shall also accept theoretical and review articles in applied fields of psychology, and brief comments on important psychological issues that arise within the applied area. Page limitations and editor's prejudice will discourage comments on specific previously published articles with the inevitable reply, rejoinder, etc., etc. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Reaction to special section on qualitative research in counseling process and outcome.

The publication of a special section of 8 qualitative studies in the Journal of Counseling Psychology marks a growing recognition of the contribution that qualitative research can make to the discipline. The researchers of the 8 studies used an adaptation of the grounded theory method as their design. The theories generated by the studies are positively evaluated with constructivist criteria. Reactions to the data collection include suggestions that intensive interviews, triangulation, and theoretical sampling may have strengthened the data sets. Response to the data analyses include recognition of the creative and rigorous manner in which the analyses were carried out. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Comparative psychology 25 years after.

Examined articles published in the Journal of Comparative and Physiological Psychology (JCPP) and Animal Behavior (AB) in the 25 yrs since F. A. Beach first surveyed the literature in 1950. In the JCPP, the number of species studied remained relatively low in view of the greatly increased number of articles published, while the reverse was true of AB, whose articles were also more diversified in terms of number of species. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Racial/ethnic minority research in the Journal of Counseling Psychology: A content analysis and methodological critique.

A content analysis was conducted of all racial/ethnic minority-focused research appearing in the Journal of Counseling Psychology over the 11-year period from 1976 to 1986. During this period 934 articles and brief reports were published, of which 53 (5.7%) had a racial/ethnic minority focus. The 53 articles were systematically reviewed for their sample characteristics and methodological considerations. The sample characteristics that were examined included ethnic groups studied, general populations sampled, and geographic breakdown of samples used. Methodological design characteristics that were investigated included general research designs incorporated, examination of within-group differences, outcome measures used, cultural sensitivity of instrumentation, acknowledgment of sample generalizability limits, and presence of conceptual or theoretical frameworks in developing research hypotheses. Data accumulated in the report were used as a base within which to examine major research methodology criticisms that have consistently appeared in recent ethnic minority literature. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Introduction to the special section on the contribution of psychotherapy and pharmacotherapy research to national mental health care.

This special section represents a coordinated publication of the Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology and the Archives of General Psychiatry. These 2 journals have typically focused on somewhat different areas of research and have been read by different audiences. In an effort to achieve cross-fertilization of the disciplines of psychiatry and clinical psychology, this coordinated publication provides a current view of research both in psychopharmacology and psychotherapy as applied to major depression, anxiety disorders, alcohol abuse, and drug abuse. To further the aims of informing the diverse readership in areas to which they are often not exposed in the separate journals, the Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology is publishing, in this section, articles that address biomedical and psychopharmacological research, and the Archives of General Psychiatry is publishing a coordinated set of articles on psychotherapy and behavior therapy. Collectively, the series contained in these 2 journals is designed both to foster knowledge and to enhance communication among psychiatrists and psychologists. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Medical research in New South Wales 1993-1996 assessed by Medline publication capture

OBJECTIVES: To assess medical research publication output in New South Wales (NSW). DESIGN: Analysis of publication information from the Medline indexing database, 1993-1996 inclusive. SETTING: Teaching hospitals and affiliated universities and medical research institutes within NSW, the major sites for NSW medical science publications. MAJOR OUTCOME MEASURES: Cumulative number and location of Medline-identified publications; journal citation indices (impact factor and immediacy index). RESULTS: 8860 published articles were captured for the analysis period. Universities and hospitals accounted for most of the publications (n = 7755). A mean of 73.1% (range, 36%-100%) of all articles were published in overseas journals, and the rest in Australian journals. This average trend applied to most universities and teaching hospitals, whereas research institutes published almost exclusively in overseas journals. Average publication impact factor values for most universities and teaching hospitals were around the average value for all NSW publications (2.203). The range for teaching hospital publications was 1.000-2.823, but for the overseas-publishing medical research institutes it tended to be higher (2.480-5.423). Immediacy index data yielded similar findings. CONCLUSIONS: The universities and teaching hospitals account for most of the medical publications arising from NSW, and also those appearing in Australian journals. Thus, these sites provide the bulk of Australian medical practice end-user information. In contrast, the medical institutes concentrate on publishing in overseas journals with higher and quicker citation rates (higher impact factor and immediacy index).